


Risk Worth Taking

by katikat



Category: White Collar
Genre: AU, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-04-02
Updated: 2010-04-02
Packaged: 2017-10-08 15:23:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/77027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katikat/pseuds/katikat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Neal's planning something...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Risk Worth Taking

**Author's Note:**

> I used the AU tag because I wrote this fic before 114 aired. The season finale kinda jossed it.

Neal rounded the corner to step into his cell as the warden ordered him to, but instead he froze, his eyes going wide. There was someone inside - Peter.

Neal's heart clenched for a moment as he watched the man, his former partner and friend, go through his things slowly and meticulously. He took in Peter's suit - still the same, Neal realized with some amusement - and his brown hair grown longer since he had last seen him eight months ago when they transported him back to prison. Then he steeled himself and stepped inside.

"Peter! This time do allow me to say mi casa es su casa," Neal greeted the other man smartly.

Peter turned around, his lips quirking in a half smile as he looked Neal over, orange jumpsuit and all. "I wish I could say that I'm happy to see you," he said.

Neal walked over to his bed that Peter obviously already looked through, sat down, leaned against the grey wall and propped his feet on the edge of the mattress. He rested his forearms on his knees and let his hands dangle between them. "Oh, but I am glad to see you. I don't get many visitors here."

No, he didn't. Mozzie visited him sporadically when he was in town and Elizabeth came once, at the very beginning - he had been happy to see her but when the visiting hours were over, he asked her not to come back. He didn't want to put Peter in an even more awkward position than he had already been. The only person who came regularly and wouldn't be dissuaded was June - she made it clear that as long as she was alive, he had one person who would always come. But a life sentence was a life sentence and being thirty-three he might live much, much longer than she. Neal would prefer if she didn't come.

"I guess not," Peter responded quietly, turning back to the pile of things he still needed to comb through.

Neal watched him silently for a long while, then he asked: "So, what brings you here? Obviously not my sparkling personality."

Peter turned to him, a book of Shakespeare's sonnets in hands. "The warden called me."

Neal raised his eyebrows. "Oh, really? I'm not making any trouble as far as I know."

Peter smirked. "No, you are not. And that's the problem."

"Now you've lost me. Being a model prisoner is now a bad thing?" Neal's voice was heavy with sarcasm.

Closing the book, Peter waved it around. "In your case? Yes."

"Oh," Neal said, nodding. "I get it. No, wait, actually I don't. Care to explain?"

Peter narrowed his eyes and gave Neal a hard look. "The warden thinks that you're being so well-behaved because you're planning something."

Neal raised his eyebrows innocently. "Something?"

"Another grand escape."

"Peter, you wound me, really," Neal said, a grin tugging at his lips. "Why would I want to escape this luxurious establishment?"

Peter watched him a moment longer, then he returned the book on its pile and headed for the door. "If you are planning something - don't. I'll just catch you again and you'll land yourself in even more trouble."

Neal's laughter was sharp and biting and it made Peter turn around in surprise. "More trouble?" Neal said caustically. "I've nothing to lose now, Peter. Nothing at all."

Peter looked at him again, then stepped outside the cell where he stopped as if he didn't want to go.

Neal looked down at the tiled floor. "It was nice to see you, Peter," he whispered, his voice raw.

Peter opened his mouth but then closed it again as if he wanted to say something but changed his mind in the last moment. In the end, he said softly: "Was it worth it? The music box, Kate, our partnership... Was it worth it?" There was some deep emotion buried in his voice and Neal suspected it was pain.

Neal studied the floor a moment longer. The music box was gone, Kate was gone, his partnership - no, friendship! - with Peter broken and the only prospect he had left was spending the rest of his days in maximum security prison. Still...

Neal looked up at Peter, looked him in the eyes. "I know that you'll never understand it, Peter, but I had to try. Kate was my Elizabeth, I loved her with my whole heart, I would have died for her. I had to try and get her back because without her, I felt half-empty, as if one of my limbs was missing. Maybe she betrayed me, maybe she didn't - we'll never find out now. But if there was one chance in a million to get her back, I had to risk it."

"And you lost," Peter said in a grave voice.

Neal nodded slowly. "And I lost. But that still doesn't mean that the risk wasn't worth taking," he returned.

They looked at each other for a long time through the metal bars.

In the end, Neal smiled slightly. "Go home, Peter. Go home and kiss Elizabeth from me and be happy with her, okay?" he said, his voice breaking slightly at the end.

Peter took a deep breath. "Take care of yourself, Neal," he responded, turned around and left without another backward glance.

*-*-*-*

Three months and six days later, Agent Peter Burke found two things waiting for him on the desk in his office. One was a report about Neal Caffrey's escape from the maximum security prison - the other was a big yellow smiley face grinning cheekily at him from an otherwise blank sheet of handmade paper.

And for the first time in many, many months, a genuine smile appeared on Peter Burke's face.

The End


End file.
